Device for controlling the flow of liquids



Ian. 30, 1940. w. F. PETERSON ET AL 2,188,761

DEVICE FOR CONTROLLING THE FLOW OF LIQUIDS Filed July 15, 1937 Ill gbwmmw:

Walker ,FYBeZens'on Alb ed U. Walter in the course of the following specification and 'water closet bowl.

Patented Jan. 30, I940 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE T DEVICE FOR CONTROLLING THE FLOW OF LIQUIDS Walker F. Peterson and Albert U. Walter, Baltimore, Md., assignors to Quiet Flow Devices, Inc., Baltimore, Md., a corporation of Maryland Application July 15,

4 Claims.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in devices for controlling the flow of liquids.

An object of the invention is to eliminate the objectionable noise, which occurs in controlling or restricting the flow of liquids where the pressure differential between the supply and the "discharge is great with the resultant high velocity of. discharge;

Further objects of the invention will appear claims.

Since an automatic flush valve and a sink faucet provide common instances of fiow controllingde- 115 vices in which noise is undesirable, such apparatus are used illustratively in this description as examples of the employment of the present invention.

, In the accompanying drawing- Figure 1 is a view partly in section and partly in elevation showing the conventional piston type ,of flush valve with theinvention incorporated therein and the regulating stop generally used in connection therewith; Fig. 2 is a sectional view on an enlarged scale of the portion of the valve" in which the invention isapplied; I

Fig. 3 is a View similar to Fig. 2, but showing a modified form of the invention, and

Fig. 4 is a view in section of a conventional sink faucet in which the invention has been incorporated.

Automatic flush valves are directly connected to the water supply lines and discharge into a The pressure in the supply lines varies from a minimum of 5 to pounds to a maximum of 100 to 125 pounds per square inch. 40 to 60 pounds is the average pressure in the supply lines in a large majority of installa- 40 tions. The pressure of discharge from the valve into the bowl is relatively low, 1 to 3 pounds being SllfilClGllt for a large majority of bowls. Little noise occurs in flush valves or in other valves and -flow'control devices when the pressure differen- 5 tial between the supply and discharge is less than 30 pounds. The noise increases rapidly as the pressure differential increases, so that in a major- I with. The purpose of this regulating stop is to regulate the how of the water during the full flushing period and also to shut off the water supply when'repairs are being madeto the flush v In the employmentof automatic flush valves, it is customary to use a regulating stop there-' 1937, Serial No. 153,826

of noise are involved. x Y

The first of these is to eliminate the objectionable noise incident to the: control of the; flow through the regulating stop duringthe period of full flush when the flush valve is'wide: open and when there is a high pressure in the supply line. Y

The second problem of noise hasto do with the noise caused by the flush valve itself, during the shutting ofi period. During this shutting ofi period the flush valve itself becomes the point of? maximum restriction and the controlling factor in the flow.

In our co-pending applications Serial No. 63,258 -and"75,474, we have shown a regulating stop, which will quietly retard .the fiow during thefull flushing period'of the flushvalve. Aquiet regulating stop, however, does not reduce the noise in the final, or. shutting off stage of the flush valve and the present invention'relates to a means whereby this objectionable noise is: eliminated, so that the. apparatus, as a whole, willbe quiet, not only during the fullfiushing period,but also during the shut off period.

C One of the principal causes of noise in restricting the. flow of'wa'ter is dueto the contact of the. high velocity water in the discharge orfiow I streamwith the water already in the discharge a passageway. ,Thiscontact occurs in a zone of low pressure (subatmospheric) caused by pressure .head being converted into velocity. head at the point of maximum restriction and by the change of cross'sectional area of .flow therebeyond'. The contact between the fast and slower moving water causes a shearing effect.v Atthehigher velocities, a definite cavitation .or void is produced, which is visible to the. naked eye when the apparatus is made of glass, I; I q H j We have-found that the admission of a very limited amount ofairat or nearfthe point of maximum restriction; or the discharge therefrom into this region of low pressure, is 'suficientto eliminate the objectionable noise, otherwise occurring. This is thGyGSSEIlCE of the invention. Air, in excess of this limited amount, causes other noises as explained'laten- There isxa great turbulence with cross currents and back currents beyond the point of maximum restriction so that the air admitted near this point is picked up by the water, churned intoa state of emulsionand carried backto the point of maximum restriction, where it appears to reduce or'eliminate the effect of the cavitation. I The finely divided mixture of air and water is of gless specific gravity and more mobile than plain water and therefore accelerates more rapidly to the velocity of the'main flow stream.

I the regulating stop RS and to the closet bowl (not shown) by the discharge tube DT. Briefly stated, the flush valve FV includes a casing l having a bore H5 at the upper end of which is a valve seat I I. This bore. It leads to the chamher '4 which delivers water to the tube DT and thence to the closet bowl., The valve proper is indicated at 2 and includes a piston having a seat washer 5' attached thereto which engages the valve seat H. Depending from'the piston is a retarding ring I0 which enters the bore it through the valve seat. Also associated with the valve 2 is the conventional auxiliary valve I l which, when tipped by the handle H, releases the water in the upper chamber [4a. The valve assembly 2 is then raised by the pressure on its under side and permits the flow of the water from the water supply WS past the valve seat I I through the bore l6 and the chamber t into the delivery tube DT. As the flushing period progresses, water flows through the bypass I l, into the chamber Ma and the piston gradually descends until its downward movement is stopped by the seat washer 5 contacting with the valve seat II.

As the lower portion of the retarding ring In approaches the seat II the flow is reduced so as to break the syphon in the trap of the bowl.. It is duringthis period ofoperation that the greatest noise occurs. A definite and objectionable noise continues after the retarding ring H] has entered thebore l6 until the. valve is seated. During this period onlysufficient water passes between the retarding ring l0 and the bore Hi to seal the trap in the bowl. It is these two .ob-

jectionable noises, which the present invention eliminates, or reduces to a minimum.

At any convenient place around the casingv l of the flush valve FV and in a transverse plane below the top portion of the seat, one or more air intake ports 6 are providedthroughthecas- .ing. Only one air intake portls illustrated and.

the description will be limited thereto. If other portsare used, they will be similarly constructed and controlled. By this arrangement of theair intake, which is adjacent to the valve seat and beyond the same in the direction offiow, air is admitted to-the region of low pressure caused by the restriction between the valve. and the valveseat. In the present embodiment of the invention the casing is provided with a cylindrical boss l2, and the air intake port is formed. by

2 drilling a hole through the boss and the'casing.

The boss is externally threaded to receive a sleeve 8. Said sleeve isprovided with an internal vmetering disk I is provided with an air intake orifice la. The outer end, of the; sleeve 8 is counter-bored so as to receive a perforated plate or screen 9, and the outer edge of the sleeve is spun over the plate or screen for holding j the same in place;

.Whenthe valve is wide open; the water pass ing seat I! and entering the bore 16 of reduced diameter is deflected away from the walls ofth bore l6 and its velocity materially increased. This produces a zone of low pressure (slightly subatmospheric) along the wall of the bore l6 for some distance below the seat Hand in the region of the inner end of the air intake port 6.

As the valve closes and the retardingring l0 ape proaches the seat, the flow StreamJis-directed still further away from the walls of the bore l6, and its velocity further increased. A zone of very low pressure is thus created along the wall of the bore lli'for a considerable distance below the seat ii and in the region of the air intakeport 6. The differential in pressure at the inner and outer ends of the air intake port 6 is sufiicient to force air through'the air intake port 6 into the the wall of the bore l6 and air continues to enter through the air intake port fi up to the seating of the washer 5 againstthevalve seat ll.

The size of the port 6 is not of 'materia1 im-' portance, as the intake of air is controlled by 'the orifice la in the metering disk ,1. A diameterof to /8" for the air intake port 6 has been found. generally satisfactory.

Considerable leeway in thedimensioning ofithe. orifice la in the metering disk I is'permissible,

and it varies according. to thefdesigr'i maple portion of the flush valve used in connection therewith and with the location of the airintake port, 6 with respect to the. seat ll. Generally v speaking, an orifice ina thin metering disk .015' to .030" in diameter will supply ample air to eliminate objectionable noise, duringv the shut 01f of any conventional'flush'valve.

If" the orifice is too large or the amount of air-not limited,

objectionable noise. is causedby theair entering and passing through the air intake portand also by the mixed air and water-as it flows'through the discharge tube, the rim of the bowl, the rim complished in reducing the noise. The size ',jor dimensionof the metering orifice 12', which controls the quantityof air admitted, is determined for the specific application. It is dimensioned to admitsufiicient'airto quiet the noise incid m i retardation of the fio'wstream and insufficient air to. cause other noises therefrom.

holes-and into the bowlitself. Therefore, unless the amount of air is controlled, no net, gain is ac The size of the opening in theperforated fplate Y I or screen 9 are smaller than theorifice la inlthe metering disk I, so as .to prevent clogging of the" However, the combined area metering orifice.

of the-openings intheperforated plate or screen 9 are sufficient sothat the size of the 'ori ficejla in the metering disk is the controlling factor in determining the supply of air through the port 6.

Considerable latitudelin the location of; the ,fair I intake port 6 relative to thevalveseatis.permissible. The exact location; for best results 'depends upon the particulardesign and proportions of the flushing valve with'which it is associated; In the form shown in Fig. 1, the bore 16 is of substantial length. In such cases thebestresults are obtained when. the'air intake port is placed so that the interior terminus is close tog 'and slightly beyond, in the direction of now, the lower= dream end of the retarding ring I'll when the valve is closed. :Such a point is in the zone of low pressure (subatmospheric) during the entire period of operation of the valve and the chance of any water passing out of the air intake port is reduced. If the bore I6 is relatively short as is the practice in some valves, the zone of low pressure caused by the restricted fiow between the seat and the valve extends beyond, in the direction of how, the lower end of the bore 16 and into the upper part of 'the chamber 4. In such cases it is preferred to locate the air intake port just below the lower end of the bore I6. "In fact, the preferred form of the invention includes as shorta length of bore I6 as practical, an appreciable larger diameter in the chamber 4 than in the bore l6 and the air intake port located immediately below the bottom of the bore l6.

It is understood, therefore, that the invention is not limited to the location of the air intake port as illustrated, but it may be placed closer to, or further from the valve seat as long as the interior terminus is well within the zone of reducedpressure, caused by the flow between the seat and the valve. 'The position is determined by the characteristics of the flush valve to which it is applied, and so that when applied; it will eliminate the objectionable noise referredto.v

The arrangement of .the'metering disk, sleeve and perforated plate or. screen, as described above, has been found effective, simple and inexpensive. It will be understood, however, that this arrangement may be greatly modified, and any suitable device for controlling the flow of air through the air intake port in the casing may be employed, or such device entirely eliminated if the port itself be properly proportioned so as to admit the right amount of air to eliminate all the objectionable noises. The proportioning of the port itself to the exact size presents manufacturing difficultiesand without the filter or guard such a small port is liable to clog.

Radially disposed wing members Mare sometimes used in connection with flush valves, said members contacting with the wall of the bore l6 for guiding the valve in its movements. When such wing members are present, they are preferably cutaway as illustrated in Figure 1, so as not to extend up to the retarding ring III. In other words, there is a passageway all the way around the valve directly beneath the ring III. In this way, the air entering through the air intake port 6 can move around the entire circumference of the bore 1'6 and is not confined to one quadrant as would be the case if the wing members extended all the way to the retarding ring H).

In a certain type of closet bowl, a relatively high pressure is required for satisfactory operation. In such cases, a pressure slightly above atmospheric may exist along the wall of the bore I6 at the inner end of the air intake port 6 when the valve is wide open.

To prevent the escape of water from the air intake port, under these circumstances, there is shown a modified form of the invention in Figure 3. In this case, a check valve consisting of a light spring 2|, a ball 22 and a seat member 23 to cooperate with the ball is associated with the air intake port 6. This check valve is so disposed as to prevent the water from passing out through the air intake port, while it permits the free flow of air into the bore I6 during the shutting off period when the pressure at the interior terminus of the air intake port 6 is below atmospheric pressure. It is at this time that air is required to eliminate the objectionable noise incident to the closing of the valve.

It is apparent that the invention is capable of wide application in the eliminating of objectionable noise which occurs in restricting the flow of liquids at high velocities. To make the scope of the invention clearer, the application of the same has been shown as applied to the conventional sink faucet in Figure 4. In connection with the flushing" valve, the air is admitted through the casing to the outer side of the annular sheet of water flowing between the valve seat and the valve. In a sink faucet, the air is admitted through the valve to the interior of such annular sheet.

Referring to Fig. 4, the valve stem 30 is drilled as at 39 from the seat end to a point beyond the bottom of the handle 3| and is counterbored as at 32 to receive the split end 33 of the seat washer holder 34. The depth of this counterbore is such that a space or passageway 35 is always maintained between the back of the seat Washer holder 34 and the lower end face of the stem' 36. At a point slightly above the bottom of the bandle 3i, a metering orifice 36 is provided to connect with the axial passageway 39 in the stem. The handle is counterbored at 31 so as to provide a protection for the metering orifice 36. The lower end of the stem is provided with a casing ring 38. The inside diameter of the casing ring 38 is slightly larger than the outside diameter of the seat washer holder 34 leaving the space 40 therebetween. The lower end of the casing ring 38 terminates slightly above the lower face of the seat washer 4|.

When the valve is opened by moving the stem assembly away from the seat 42, the water flows between the seat washer 4| and the seat 42 as shown by the arrows. The velocity of the water at this point is high and the pressure lowin fact sub-atmospheric so that as the flow stream passes off the seat washer [4, air is drawn in through the channel formed by the spaces 40, 35, 39 and 36. The admission of a limited amount of air at any point close to the maximum restriction of the seat and downstreamward thereof eliminatesthe objectionable noise caused by this throttling and is the essence of the invention.

The construction and operation of the sink faucet shown above is typical of other plumbing fixtures such as basin and bath faucets, etc

where the elimination of noise is most desirable and in which the present invention can be readily incorporated.

By properly proportioning the parts of the valve and carefully locating the entrance of the air portwith respect to the seat, a sub-atmospheric pressure at such entrance point and consequent sucking'in of air through the air port at all times can be obtained even though there is a substantial back pressure, to the discharge of the valve in such case as shower heads, for example.

It is obvious from the above that the invention has a wide range of application and is not limited to the specific illustrated embodiment thereof. It is also obvious that the arrangement of the parts and the details of construction can be widely varied without departing from the spirit of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

Having thus described the invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

In a device for retarding the flow of liquids under pressure, the combination of a valve body having a valve seat therein, a valve cooperating with said seat for controlling the flow of liquid 5.; through said valve body, and. means for reducing the noise incident to the retardation of the flow when the valve and, seat form a restricting passage, said means including a metering orifice arranged to admit air to the region of low pres- 10; sure caused by said restricting passage, said metering orifice being dimensioned so as to admit a sufficient quantity of air to reduce the noise incident to the retardation of the flow and an insufficient quantity ofair to create objectionable 15, noises caused by the admitted air.

" 2. In a device for retarding the flow of liquids under pressure, the combination of a valve body having a valve seat' therein, a valve cooperating with said'seat' for controlling the flow of liquid 2,9; through said valve body, andmeans for reducing the noise incident to the retardation of the flow when the valve and seat form a restricting passage, said valve body having a passage arranged to admit air at the region of low pressure caused 25; by the restriction between the valve and the valve seat, a portion of said passage being dimensioned so as to admit air in suflicient quantity to reduce the noise incident to retardation of the flow and in insufficient quantity to create objectionable 3Q; noises caused by the admitted air.

3. In a device for retarding the flow of liquids seat, said passage having an orifice with a crOsslo sectional area not exceeding 0.0012 square inch; 1 I 4. In a device for retarding the flow of liquids under pressure, the combination of a valve body having a valve seat therein, avalve cooperating 1.5

with said seat for controlling the flow of liquid through said valve body, a lever'beyond theseat in the direction of flow for actuating the valve, and means for reducing then'oise incident to the retardation of new when the valve and seat ao- 'qj form a restricting passage; said means including a metering orifice arranged to admit airthrough the valve body at a point between the seatand the operating lever, said orifice being dimen sioned so as to admit a sufficient quantity of air to reduce the noise incident to the retardation of the flow and an insufficient quantity of air to create objectionable noises caused by the admit- 1 I ted air.

WALKER. F. PETERSON; 1 3,

ALBERT UJWALTER. t 

